@chrisdtc101
The freedom of online information has been a touchy subject among people lately, and has even grabbed the attention of the US government who tried to pass the SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) in the end of 2012. I believe that in today’s world, musicians, authors, film producers, and other producers of electronic goods need to recognize and accept that the Internet cannot be policed as well as they would like. If a producer chooses to release their product online, whether as an eBook, posting a video on Youtube, or releasing a song on spotify or iTunes, they need to realize that it is going to be taken and misused by other people on the Internet.
We live in a unique era where people can “pirate” and steal things easier than every before. I believe that anything that is posted online with the knowledge and approval of the product’s creator is free for use as long as it is cited and credited when used by someone else. This is an easy decision when concerning individual blogs, youtube videos, and websites, but is harder when the product is an important source of income for the producer. For someone who films writes on a blog for a living or runs a website, use of their writing without consent or citation is a serious problem.
Unfortunately, we live in a world where we cannot post anything online and expect the masses to respect private property and not pirate something. It just isn’t realistic in today’s society. I think that producers need to post their content online only if they are ok with it being reused by other people.